Category: Legal Advice

The hiring landscape is changing rapidly and commercial lawyers are feeling the impact. The environment is complicated and so are the tools that employers use to sift through mountains of resumes. Time is short for most recruiting professionals and finding the best candidates has become increasingly competitive. Often, it’s the first employer to find a candidate, and make an offer, that is able to recruit top talent.

So employers are rapidly turning to vast data stores and software to assist them in culling out the chaff and leaving only the desirable candidates behind. Some refer to this as the “Big Data” movement.

What is driving the move to Big Data? First, most candidate assessment tools are extremely old and outdated. The software is based on decades-old assumptions and processes and don’t take into account the way candidates want to find jobs and the way the modern workforce communicates and lives.

Additionally, the modern workplace has changed and the metrics we’ve typically used in the past to assess performance have changed. Technology has changed what jobs demand, the work hours people choose, where they work from, etc. Tradition tools aren’t equipped deal with these changes.

The workforce has changed as well. Generations of workers have come and gone since recruiting tools were updated and the present generation operated on very different values, assumptions, and goals that workers in past eras.

Property lawyers will tell you that buying property off the plan means you are putting down a deposit for a property that is not yet built. This happens most often when a property developer buys a big acreage of land that he intends to subdivide into smaller blocks and build homes on, then sell. To get the money for that, he advertises the plans, which allows prospective buyers to choose one of many blocks in an area they like.

There are pros and cons of buying off the plan that should be carefully considered before going ahead.

If you own a business you will have to sign a lot of contracts. There are many different types of business contracts and commercial lawyers are needed to ensure you are not signing something that will adversely affect your business or your ability to run it. People agree to contracts in all their daily buying without even realising it. Such contracts are not signed, but include a clause that by doing business with the company you agree to the terms of the contract.

This can be as simple as setting up a bank account or buying a book online. It is in place when you purchase groceries or go to the doctor or dentist. Most people don’t even read these contracts and it doesn’t really matter most of the time. It simply protects the business in some way.

If you have assets then you will need to plan for their distribution after you die. Having a consultation with a family lawyer will ensure that your estate planning is done correctly so it is legal and no one can step in to challenge or change it. You have a right to leave your assets to whomever you want, but the law says you have a duty to your family to support and maintain them, so they should not be left out.

That said, you can still leave gifts to charities and people who are not related by blood, at your discretion.

Step children cannot Contest a Will, but other family members may. If you leave out some family members but not others, those who are not included can challenge the Will. Even if people are included, they can still challenge the Will if they think they should have been left more. These are the people who can challenge your Will.

If you are looking to lease a property for commercial reasons, it is wise to consult with your lawyers & solicitors well before you sign anything. They can ensure that the lease is drawn up properly so that you know exactly what you will have to pay. And they can add clauses to protect you from many potential problems. So how exactly is rent for a commercial property calculated? Several things are taken into consideration.

The present age is the age of social media, where all small and big businesses are run through the use of social media.

Is your business protected against potential legal complications you could face while promoting your products and services through social media? Are your employees aware of these issues ways to steer clear of infringing upon laws? It’s high time you were aware of the top five legal issues in social media.

Many people operate their businesses solely through the internet, using social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, etc., as their primary medium of communication. While effective, this approach does come with its own set of risks. The gains it nets are proportionate to the legal issues your business might be exposed to if not taken care of properly on time.

1. Revealing Confidential Information

The most common yet the most dangerous legal issue with regard to social media, is the disclosure of confidential information. Often times, the secrets of your business or some valuable information regarding shares and policies may be leaked out by the employee or any other party with information.

Obstructions and hurdles in business is one thing. But, failure in business due to small legal mistakes and failing to get the correct legal advice is sheer foolishness.

Whether large scale or small, a business is a business and needs to be operated as such. You have invested a lot of your money and time into strengthening it. And once it is established, you reap long-term benefits out of it. The point is, not all small scale businesses reach their desired positions in the corporate environment. Faced by lots of hardships, your efforts to establish a small scale business mostly end in vain due to lack of attention to detail and responsibility on your part.

Small businesses can turn profits faster than large scale ones. But because you think of it as just a small business, you tend to avoid important legal formalities and ultimately lose your business.

Here are some of the most common legal mistakes committed by small businessmen.

Not Entering Into a Proper Legal Contract with an External Party

Many small businesses enter into agreements without having advice from lawyers, any legal stamps or signatures by other party. People think that signing a formal contract is just a waste of resources. However, whether internal or external, a legally binding contract is very important. You may ignore the need for legal stamps in internal contracts, but when signing a paper with an external party, legalities must be invoked.

Survival of the fittest is what we are expected to focus on, in today’s fast moving Australian business community. Having a business and running it successfully combines different ingredients together. Therefore, a small business has to face many challenges and overcome innumerous hurdles on a daily basis. There is a never ending list that should be taken into account while talking about challenges and hurdles, but legal issues also take top priority. Few of the major legal problems associated with small businesses are listed below.

Choosing the Right Legal Structure

Not only do you have to make a choice of what exactly you are offering to the people, but also, it is immensely significant to choose the right legal structure. This decision can either make or break you in the anticipated difficult times of your business. This also directly affects your personal liability, amount of taxes your business will have to pay, and the entire future development of your business and its legal implications.

If you have put in a lot of thought, time and money in trying to set up your new business startup in Australia, then it makes sense to do your homework and avoid making any legal errors which can pour all your efforts down the drain!

Remember, a legal blunder will not only create a mountain of paperwork for you, it can also lead to case hearings and even penalties, subjected by the authorities. You might also end up damaging the company reputation, driving away customers at a time, when you need them the most. So, what is the best strategy to deal with this problem? The foolproof way to avoid any chance of a case hearing or getting penalized for a legal violation is to make sure that you go by the book and don’t leave out any legal responsibility at all.

Prepare to set up a business which conforms to all legal liabilities and thus, avoid any legal issues in the future. This simple strategy will take some effort as you make sure that all your legal obligations are met.

Following are some important points to keep in mind, which will help you avoid fines and penalties;

Register Your Business and Avoid All Trademark Infringements
When you choose a name for your company, make sure that it is not registered by any other enterprise. Get your company name registered after making sure that it is available for use, and you are not getting involved in the act of trademark infringement.

Dealing with bankruptcy is a stressful process, and with debt collectors nagging you again and again, it becomes even more nerve-racking and traumatic. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was passed in order to keep the debt collectors at bay, and guard you from the unnecessary harassment. If you are being bullied by debt collectors then it’s high time you make use of your rights.

Covered Debts
Debtors can opt for Fair Debt Collection Practices Act if they owe; household, family, and personal debts. It also includes debt on personal credit card, mortgage, medical receipt, and car loan. Debts that were acquired to accomplish a business are not a part of this act.

An individual can also limit the payments applicability to a specific debt when the collector tries to gather more than a single debt. The collector will then apply your debt payments to your selected debt. Similarly, if a debtor thinks they do not owe a particular debt, the collector cannot impose the payment to it.

If you are planning to set up a new business in Australia, there are a hundred and one things you will need to sort out before you can inaugurate the business. One of the most important things in this long list is a business trademark.

The name, brand, and logo of your business all need to be trademarked if you want your business to have its own identity in the industry and with the customers. If you don’t apply for a trademark, then there is a high chance that another business might use your logo or name and launch their own company, without any legal ramifications whatsoever. They could easily get a trademark and you might be charged for trademark infringement all because they registered it before you did.

Such are the technicalities of trademark registration. If someone uses your business identity and you didn’t bother to go to the trouble of getting it registered, you could be losing loyal customers who would unsuspectingly opt for your competitor’s services with the same name as you! And to rub salt into the wounds, you can’t file for trademark infringement since you didn’t have the brand and logo registered in the first place.

The only way to make it a win-win situation and ensure that your customers are not swindled away by anyone else is to register for a logo and business brand. Think it’s difficult? There are indeed a number of procedures involved and you can get answers to your questions below,

A non-compete agreement or clause is a lawful contract, in the form of writing, between the boss and the worker. It is applicable after the employee leaves their current job. The necessary terms and conditions within this contract include a prohibition to work in the same industry or with a firm which is competing with the organization, for six months to 2 years, following the end of the employment.

Although a non-compete agreement is for the protection of the company’s clients and other private information which is not accessible to everyone; at some places, it is disapproved of, because it stops an individual from earning a living for themselves in the field of their choosing. For this reason, the court system closely analyzes legal disputes arising from non-compete agreements also called as covenant in restraint of trade.

Benefits of a Non-Compete Agreement

Non-compete agreement works in the favor of the employer because it forbids the ex-employees from giving out important confidential information to the competitors that will facilitate them in earning more profits. This information includes; list of clients, business plans, company’s secret of success, and industry experience and knowledge, etc.

The employees can benefit from this agreement by getting some reward which can be; a job, monetary payment, or promotion, in return for signing the clause.

As an entrepreneur engaged in a startup, there are several issues that need to be resolved in the early days of establishing your company. Failing to do so may involve complicated legal issues where you will need an experienced criminal lawyer or corporate lawyer especially in terms of copyright and patents, where even partnerships especially, can go wrong.

One of the biggest real life examples of copyright litigation was faced by Mark Zuckerberg himself in the Zuckerberg vs. Winklevoss faceoff regarding the rights of Facebook. Though Zuckerberg himself walked away with the company, still the payoff to those who litigated against him including his partner, won a considerable amount of compensation.

However, not everyone can be lucky enough to own a company worth millions. With such factors in mind, it is imperative to take note of the legal aspects of a startup where every loose end should be tight enough to protect you from any chance that litigation lawyers will pursue you for copyright claims.

Here’s what you need to do:

Make a clear-cut agreement with your partners

An initial co-founder agreement will ensure you do not face any copyright problems from disgruntled co-founders. A partnership can go wrong, it happens. This is why you need to be firm in the beginning. A co-founder agreement should contain the following clauses:

Percentage rights of individual members

Designations of members and extent of responsibility

The limitation of rights of a member resigning from the partnership

The rights of remaining partners to buy shares from a resigning member

Getting a property lease for your business is quite different from finding a home to rent. Whether your business is new or needs more space to accommodate the growth, you should know that the market is working in favor of business owners when it comes to commercial real estate. Hopefully, these 7 tips will help you lease the right business property for the long term!

Compare Rent Against Amenities

You may be getting a commercial lease at cheaper rates, but if there is inadequate space for common areas like meeting rooms, hallways, elevators, and restrooms, then you may have to invest extensively in renovations. Also remember that commercial lease agreements will have an annual percentage-based rent increase, so don’t invest in a property you can’t sustain for the long term.

The Use Clause

The use clause is incorporated in lease agreements to define activities the tenant will engage in on the property. Make sure that you negotiate a cap with the landlord on the rent increase in order to avoid any unmanageable costs or costs that are not controlled by you.

If you have found the best property for your commercial premises, then you must now be considering signing a lease for the property. But do you know what a commercial lease is, and are you familiar with the different clauses which outline the importance of the document?

The clauses in the lease highlight the rights and obligations of both the tenant and the landlord, and any discrepancy and negligence can result in breach of contract by either one of the two parties.

Your Commercial Lease – What Is It?
It is very important for you to recognize the importance of a commercial lease, as it is a legally binding contract. It is essential for both the tenant and the landlord to understand the different terms and conditions given in the contract before signing up the contract.

It is also important that both the parties recognize their obligations and rights, so that all disputes can be avoided, or easily handled if any should arise. Since most lease clauses are quite complicated, it is important to seek the help of an expert who can advise you on the matter.

You need expert legal help, before you,

Occupy any leased property

Pay any deposit or any other form of monies

Make commitment to take, lease or buy on any work which might affect your lease obligations

According to www.lawyerslist.com.au getting a lawyer’s insight before signing a contract is essential; whether it is a legal employment contract, a real estate contract, a license agreement, lease agreement, or mortgage. Many times, people overlook the basic details, and at times, even the contract and the country’s law contradict each other. To avoid problems like these, commercial lawyers can assist you in evaluating your contracts.

Following is how lawyers assess a document to make sure that the employer or any other contractor is not being extremely strict and putting your rights at stake, either during or after the employment.

Important Clauses
Before signing a contract, you need to make sure that it is stating all the important points and clauses that the employee discussed with you during the meeting; see this doc Australian Contract Law Reform. An effective contract highlights all the major details. For example, in some contracts, there is a mention of the time period it is applicable for and whether the contract is enforceable or not.

Additionally, when it comes to it, the document should mention clearly about exchanging certain items in place of others, as necessary. Formation of the contract cannot take place if the exchange is not valid or equal. This can also include a situation when the services that a person is providing are greater than their salary or at no salary at all. In this case, there is a lack of consideration, which makes it an illegal contract.